Onion-cleaner.



No. 784,618. PATENTED MAR. 14, 1905. F. GRIFFIS.

v ONION CLEANER.

APPLICATION FILED mm: 27,1904.

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No. 784,618. PATENTED MAR. 14, 1905. P. GRIFFIS.

ONION CLEANER.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 27,1904.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

UNITED STATES Patented March 14, 1905.

PATENT OEEIcE.

FRENCH GRIFFIS, OF MCDONALD TOWNSHIP, HARDIN COUNTY, OHIO ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO CHANDLER ROBBINS, OF SPRINGFIELD OHIO.

ONION-CLEANER.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 784,618, dated March 14, 1905.

Application filed June 27,1904. Serial No. 214,220.

To all whom it TILCLZ/ concern:

Be it known that I, FRENCH GRIErIs, a citizen of the United States, residing in McDonald township, in the county of Hardin and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Onion-Cleaners,of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to onion-cleaners, and has for its object to provide a machine of a portable character whereby the dirt and loose portions of peel or skin may be separated from the onions, which latter are discharged from the machine thoroughly cleaned and ready for sorting.

To these ends my invention consists in certain novel features which I will now proceed to describe and will then particularly point out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view of a machine embodying my invention in one form. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of the revolving cylindrical screen, and Fig. sis a transverse sectional view of the same.

In the said drawings, 1 indicates a suitable platform mounted upon supporting-Wheels 2 and provided with draft-rigging 3, so that it may be readily moved from place to place within the fields according to the location of the material operated upon. Upon theplatform 1 are mounted standards I, located two at each end of the platform and connected in pairs by cross-pieces 5, thusforming supports for the shaft 6 of the rotary screen or cleaning-cylinder 7,which shaft is mounted in bearings 8 on said supports. The rotary screen is cylindrical in form, open at both ends, and composed of a plurality of longitudinal slats or bars 9, spaced apart to form openings 10 of a size such as to prevent the onions from passing through, while permitting the dirt and impurities to escape through said openings. The slats 10 are supported by suitable heads or spiders mounted on the shaft 6, three of these being shown in the present instance located, respectively, at the middle and at both ends of the screen. Each, head comprises a hub 11, secured to the shaft 6, radial arms or spokes 12, eXtendingoutward from said hub, and an annular rim 13, to which latter the slats 9 are secured in any approved manner. In order to provide means for feeding the onions along the screen from the receiving to the discharge end thereof, I provide a spiral feeding-rib 14, secured to the inner surface of the screen and preferably consisting of a rope or cable fastened to the slats 9 in any suitable manner as, for instance, by nailing, which is preferred when the slats are constructed, as is usually the case, of wood.

Rotary motion is imparted to the screening-cylinder 7 by any suitable means, that shown consisting of a belt 15, passing around the body of the cylinder about midway between its ends and also around a pulley 16 on a shaft 17, mounted in suitable bearings on the platform 1. If desired, a ring or annular piece 18 may be placed around the exterior ofthe screening-cylinder in order to form a bearing for the belt. The shaft 17 is preferably driven by means of a portable motor 19, preferably a gas-engine, mounted on a suitable base 20 and having a driving-pulley 21, from which a belt 22 passes around a pulley 23 on the shaft 17.

24 indicates a feeding-chute by means of which the uncleaned onions are introduced into the receiving end of the screening-cylinder, and 25 indicates a discharge-chute, preferably wide and shallow, through which the cleaned onions are discharged from the cylinder. 26 indicates a blast-fan having a pulley 27 by means of which'it is driven from a pulley 28 on the shaft 17 through the medium of a belt 29. The discharge-pipe 30 of this blast-fan extends to the edge of the dischargetrough 25 adjacent to the discharge end of the cylinder 7 and is so arranged that the air-cur-' rent created by the blastof the fan is directed across the shallow discharge-chute 25.

It is customary on large onion-farms such as exist in certain parts of the country nowadays to gather together the onions as they are harvested in large quantities at one or more places in the fields. The apparatus thus constructed may be readily transported to any place where the onions to be cleaned have been accumulated, and being there set in operation the uncleaned onions are delivered from the chute 24 into the receiving end of the revolving cylinder-screen. They are fed along said screen to the discharge end thereof by the spiral feeding-rib l4 and during their passage the soil adhering to them becomes detached and passes out through the openings of the screen along with other impurities. The onions discharged from the screen intothe chute are subjected during their passage along said chute to the blast of the fan 26, and the loose fragments of peel or skin and other light impurities which may not have passed through the openings 10 of the screen are blown away and separated from the onions, which latter are discharged from the chute 25 thoroughly cleaned and ready for sorting or delivery.

1 do not wish to be understood as limiting myself strictly to the precise details of construction hereinbefore described, and shown in the accompanying drawings, as the same may obviously be modified without departing from the principle of my invention.

Having thus fully described myinvention, what I claim as new. and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A portable apparatus for cleaning onions comprising a platform provided with supporting-Wheels and drive-gear and having supports thereon,a shaft having its bearings on said supports, a rotating screen carried by said shaft, said screen being open at both ends and having an internal spiral feeding-rib, an inclined discharge-chute to receive the onions as they come from said screen, a blast-fan mounted on said platform and having its discharge-pipe arranged to direct the blast across the discharge-chute, a counter-shaft mounted on said platform and provided with driving-pulleys for the blast-fan and screen, a driving-belt connecting the blast-fan and its pulley, and a driving-belt passing around the other pulley and around the body of the screen, substantially as described.

2. A portable machine for cleaning onions comprising a platform provided with supporting-wheels and draft-gear, a revolving screen and blast-fan mounted on said platform, said screen being open at both ends and provided with means for feeding the onions through the same, an inclined discharge-chute at the discharge end ofsaid screen, the blast-fan having its discharge-pipe arranged to direct the blast across said chute, a counter-shaft mounted on said platform, power-transmitting means for driving said cylinder and blast-fan from said counter-shaft, substantially as described.

3. A portable machine for cleaning onions comprising a platform 1, with wheels 2 and draft devices 3, standards 4, shaft 6 mounted therein, rotating screen 7 carried thereby and having the interior spiral feeding-rib 14, the inclined discharge chute 25, a blast-fan 26 with its discharge-pipe 3O discharging across the chute 25, a counter-shaft 17 mounted on the platform 1 and having pulleys 26 and 16, a belt 29 connecting pulley 26 to the fan-shaft, and a belt 15 passing around the pulley 16and around the body of the screen.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

FRENCH GRIFFIS.

\Vitnesses:

Lucy M. QUINT, MARY R. QUINT. 

